


The Longest December

by KrossoverKing



Series: Of Existence [1]
Category: Final Fantasy VI
Genre: F/F, FFVI, Final Fantasy VI - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-08-14
Updated: 2013-08-15
Packaged: 2017-12-23 11:09:29
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 12,512
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/925669
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KrossoverKing/pseuds/KrossoverKing
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Nothing graphic yet. I wanted to write a post-canon fic for these two, and after playing through DrumSolo's patch of Final Fantasy IV, I finally got the motivation.</p><p>I do not own Final Fantasy VI, or any of the characters. I make no money from this work.<br/>Written by tumblr user Menzoberranzan.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Of New Beginnings

 

 **PROLOGUE** :  
          Not long after the God-Emperor's defeat at the hands of the Returners, rumors began to circulate that he was not, in fact, gone. Moreover, the Babel Tower hadn't fallen, not really, though it shed a few pieces every so often, acting as though it were going to crumble and yet never quite making it. The Espers were gone from the world itself, draining all the magic from this world, and yet two halfling humans survive even today.  
          The seasons of this ruined world have become so much harsher, and areas that once had snow are now blanketed on all sides by deserts and rock; where previously there were only white, sun-fried sands, there now waited gleaming, blinding snow.  
          Torrential downpours are a daily occurrence in the former town of Mobliz, and the Moblizites themselves were forced to move, move or die. Thus, these children and indeed, Terra Branford herself, were forced to move to Figaro. The castle itself, Figaro Castle, now spends most of it's time underground, sharing the geological stratum with the Ancient Castle. It's in this space, encapsulated on all sides by impenetrable rock, that the Returners have made into their base. However, no one actually lives in Figaro, except for the displaced Moblizites.  
          Yet, in spite of all this, there's still one thing that makes life in this brave, new world bearable. The forests bloom and grow, overtaking old cities, namely, the former Imperial Capitol Vector; Doma has become a thriving metropolis, and Zozo itself has become a tourist spot, now that the rains there have stopped.  
          Magitek was erased from the world, through the combined efforts of Locke Cole, Cyan Garamonde, and Edgar Figaro; with the fall of Kefka and the Empire itself, the world has gotten the first taste of hope that it has had in a very long time, and yet, when the Returners meet in the Ancient Castle, only one thought remains between them, not spoken but shared with glances, half-thought words and dark, primal fears.  
          Is it possible to truly slay a God?  
  
          This is the tale of what happened before, during, and after the Cataclysm, that terrible day when all light left the world, when the sun and moon were consumed by the Darkness of space.  
  
  
 **CHAPTER ONE** **:  
** **Three weeks ago – Six Months after Kefka's Defeat**  
          “I just don't understand what we have to be so worried about! We killed him, right?! We saw him dissolve into dust! What can he do now, when he's not even a pile of ash?” Edgar demanded, seated at the head of the table. Today was the third time that everyone gathered together in Figaro Castle, to determine how to best help the world return to normal, and everyone had shown up, save for Mog and Umaro, but maybe that was best.  
          Just to the left of King of Figaro, Rightful Sovereign of the Kingdom of Figaro, his Royal Highness Edgar Roni Figaro, sat his best friend Locke Cole. The thief (Treasure Hunter) stiffened in his seat, and searched the faces of the assemblage. On each face, there was almost a pall, a veil of weariness and worry, painted there by the strains they all endured. It was a harsh new world, and each person played their part, and did so well. After all, if the Returners, the Heroes of the World, didn't step up to take the reigns of the government they'd overturned, who's to stop someone worse than Ghestahl or Kefka from taking over? Locke relaxed just a little, his eyes swiveling around the room again, making mental notes of each person.  
          To Edgar's right sat the famed ninja, Shadow, with his faithful companion Incerceptor on his lap. Out of courtesy for his friends, when they met like this, he made sure to remove his headgear, a show of trust. These were the same people who'd stood on a falling rock, waiting for him to move, all while hurtling toward the ground at terminal velocity. Whether he'd say it or not, Shadow owed them all his life, and if he could help somehow, he'd be ready.  
          On Locke's left slumped the Air Pirate Setzer Gabbiani, master of the Falcon, with his feet propped up on the table itself. This, of course, didn't sit well with Cyan, who sat to Setzer's own left at the circular table. Cyan lifted his hand slowly, and brought it down on Setzer's knee, not hard enough to do any damage, but enough to let him know that there was no call to have one's feet on a table in a host's home. Smiling while he rubbed his knee, Setzer sat up straight, and looked directly at the King of Figaro, his gaze blank.  
          “To be honest, I don't really remember seeing any evidence of a body. I mean, he started out mortal, yeah, and gained powers through magical means, both by magicite and statues. So, when those powers left, shouldn't there have been a body left behind, or something, some evidence of his former self?” Setzer inquired, ever the voice of reason.  
Edgar's jaw opened and closed for a few moments, trying to work out an answer that would make sense, something that could prove that Kefka Palazzo, the Mad Mage, was indeed gone for good. Still, he was coming up with nothing, and everyone could see it. Even his brother, Sabin, seated to Cyan's left, could see that the king was trying, and yet, they all knew there was no real answer yet.  
          Across from the king sat the Elder of Thamasa, Strago Magus, one of the most powerful mages on the face of the planet. The old man had come here with his granddaughter Relm, because she;d pretty much forced him to, and while these few who were speaking were debating the practicality of killing a God, Strago himself was trying to figure out just what was going on. He reached to his left and tapped Relm's shoulder, and grinned, pointing at Shadow's hefty doberman, which prompted her to get up and trot over to the dog, whom she began to pet.  
          “I think I have an idea!” Strago began, standing up to his full height. Diminutive at best, at five feet, but impressive all the same, given that the staff in his hands was no longer supporting him. He grinned wider still, and then rested his staff on the circular table, his eyes narrowing in concentration.  
          “What's that, old man? You'll have to speak up, we're not tone-deaf like you!” Locke chided gently, returning the smile. Everyone could feel it, though, that unmistakable ripple of magic as it spread from the middle of the room. Here, Setzer reached over and swatted the back of Locke's head.  
          “Let him work; if I know anything about gambling, and believe me I do, this man has an ace up his sleeve,” the Pirate stated, lighting the cigarette in his mouth. Across the table from Setzer and Cyan sat the two halflings, Celes Chere and Terra Branford. Of course, Terra sat between Celes and Shadow, more because they wanted her to, and maybe she didn't mind so much being next to Celes. A few things had changed, mostly between Celes and Terra, but only someone who was watching would catch the glances that the two girls shared, the subtle care they took with each other.  
          All at once, the lights darkened, the rays drawn towards Strago's staff, swirling there like a small storm. The only prelude to what came next was a slight pause in the circle of magic, and then all hell broke loose.  
          There was a whipsnap of lightning that lashed about the room, before striking the table. What happened next can only be described as a flood, originating from where the lightning had struck the wood, and then it was gone, replaced by a fire, which burned impossibly bright for just a moment before flickering into a frozen, blue flame. Then, there was a truly blinding flash of light, which left the ten attendees with light trails in their eyes.  
          In the middle of the table sat now a single piece of magicite, the physical remains of an esper, by which they could be summoned. But how had that happened? Hadn't all the Espers fled behind the gate and sealed themselves off from the world? And yet, this single shard was in front of them now, and surrounding it was a geometrically-correct map of part of the planet, complete with flowing water, clouds, and even individual blades of miniature grass.  
          It was Terra who moved first, having a closer connection to the espers than anyone else, save perhaps for Celes, and when she went to close her hands around it, they simply passed through it. Where the magicite appeared to sit was surrounded by ice and mountains, and as they all watched, the magicite appeared to shrink, becoming nothing but a tiny pinprick buried somewhere under the land itself. Dismayed, Terra tried to dig for it, only to find her hands scrabbling across the wood surface of the table.  
          “Strago, what was that?” Celes demanded, facing the old mage with a hard stare. Something had changed within her when the Espers retreated behind the Gate, when she'd waited for the moment that Terra would die, but that moment had never come. Now, she lived her life to protect her dearest friend. That was how she explained the relationship between herself and Terra when she was asked.  
          Locke sat up straighter in his seat, craning his neck to look at the map. Of course he recognized it, it was the Veldt, he'd know what it looks like even if he was in space! He grinned then, and pulled a slip of paper out of his pocket to scribble down some instructions out of habit; after all, one doesn't get to be a famous treasure hunter by accident.  
          “That, Celes, was the location of the last remaining Esper this side of the Gate. I'd intended to find out if we'd actually destroyed Kefka, but it seems that I wasn't exactly prepared to use that spell. From what I understand, if you get that crystal, we should be able to find out what happened to Kefka, and possibly set this world aright, you get it?” Strago explained, and Edgar stood up, bracing his hands on the table.  
          “Very well. Now, to the next question. Why are we doing this if we all saw him fade away into nothing? Why are we so worried? He started out mortal, he ended mortal!” the king demanded, and Sabin sat forward.All of them were thinking the same thing: Edgar was grasping at straws, and everyone knew it, too. Edgar was worried, they were all worried. Maybe for nothing, but still, it was always better to err on the side of caution. Cyan gripped the sword braced on his lap and smiled the grim smile of a warrior ready for combat, and as he watched, the rest of the Returners all readied themselves for the coming journey.  
          “No,” Terra stated blankly, sitting back in her seat. She clasped her hands together on her lap, and with a half-smile, promptly stood, staring at Celes. The White Knight stood, her right hand gripping the hilt of her own sword, and she locked eyes with everyone in the room, saving the king for last.  
          “No, I think that I'll go and fetch it,” Terra continued, the smile on her face blooming. This caused Celes to smile herself, and even in the half-dark of the room, it made her look younger somehow, not that she was old to begin with. Promptly, Locke slammed his hand down on the table, standing himself.  
          “I don't fucking think so, Princess. You don't get to put yourself at risk like that; if you go, we all go, and you know that,” he stated plainly, his eyes narrowing to fine slits. He stood there, tapping his fingers on the table, waiting for Terra and Celes to sit, which, of course, they didn't. This, naturally, infuriated him.  
          “Why should we let you go into possibly unknown danger, all on the vain hope that we'll find a tool to tell us what we need to know? Just tell me that,” Shadow spoke up, “Not that I really care one way or the other, I just want to know, I'm curious. Do you think that you're going to accomplish some great task, or that you'll be able to find the Espers again?”  
          Terra just shook her head before saying, “No, nothing like that, I promise. Think about it, though. You all are humans, right? That means that as far as the Espers are concerned, you are all enemies, right? Well, consider this. If I go-”  
          “Then you'd be considered a delegation from the human world, and given that you have Esper blood in your veins, you won't be attacked. It's actually pretty brilliant, because you'll have to ask this Esper for help, and they might not be so inclined if they realize that humans are behind it,” Celes finished for her, and then she simply nodded. Locke crossed his arms over his chest, and then slammed his hand down on the table again, sliding the hand-made map over to Terra.  
          “I'm going with you,” Celes continued, turning to face her friend, “And I won't hear a word otherwise, understood? You're one lone girl, and I'm not about to let you go through that door alone. Any objections?” Of course, Terra shook her head no.  
          At that moment, there was silence in the room. No matter how they might have wished to go with the two girls, they couldn't. Celes and Terra were right, they were the only two esper-bloods left alive, so they had a better shot than anyone else at getting this to work. Still, though, everyone had reservations.  
          “And just how exactly do you two plan on getting to the Veldt, especially given the blizzards?” Shadow asked idly. “Again, it's not like I care, I'd just hate to see my employers roasting over a cannibal spit, understand?”  
          “I'll take them,” Setzer spoke up. “In fact, why don't we all go? Might be the last time we get to hang out for a few weeks, so we should send them off in sty-”  
          “We are not having one of your parties again, Setzer,” Sabin began testily, speaking for the first time since the meeting really began. “The last time I partied with you, I woke up without my pants, wearing a bra, and tied upside down to a tree in Narshe. Thanks for the offer, but no thanks.” Around the room were a few murmurs of agreement, and Setzer deflated just a bit.  
          “Okay, so maybe not a party, but can we at least all go to drop them off? I won't be able to get very close if I try to drop them off near the outskirts, but if we do an airdrop, they'll get much nearer their target, you see? We fly tomorrow, so everyone rest up and be ready at dawn!” Setzer pressed on, and finally, everyone relented. Now that the meeting was adjourned, Celes sat back down and watched the other members of the Returners leave the War Room, all of them save for Terra. They watched each other for more than a few moments, and finally, tiring of the loud silence between them, Celes spoke first.  
          “Is there something on my face, Branford?” Celes demanded quietly. Terra smiled again, and sat herself down in her seat, shaking her head.  
          “No, nothing like that. I was just wondering why you simply said that you were going with me. You didn't even give me a chance to say why that might be a bad idea,” she answered evenly, unfolding the map in her hands. The directions were easy to follow, but at the same time, Locke had written notes all around it, and Terra couldn't read them.  
          “Would you prefer that I stay behind, then?” Celes asked, and even as she said the words, she regretted them. Her heart thumped for a moment, and then eased back into normal rhythm when Terra shook her head again.  
          “No, I actually- I'm not sure why yet, but I think you might need to be there. Not to help me talk to the Esper or anything, but,” Terra began, fumbling over her words, “B-but because I want you to be there,” she finished, and then she was folding the map again. Without another word, she stood, and strode out of the room and heading to her own bedroom, leaving Celes to ponder.  
          “Well, alone again,” Celes said aloud, to no one in particular. In fact, she was alone; who could hear her this far under the Castle of Figaro while it was underground itself? “I wonder what all that was about. I don't gather that it matters, really, because the end result is going to be the same either way. I just don't really see a reason to get so worked up about it. If we defeated Kefka once, chances are good that we can do it again, right?” she demanded of herself. This was a habit of hers, talking to herself. It helped her rationalize.  
          “I suppose the only logical thing to do is get ready for the coming adventure,” she mused, and when she stood, she stared at her hands. These same hands had wrought such evil in the world, and now? Now she was trying to scrape an existence, working as a sword-for-hire on this empty rock.  
          “So be it,” she continued, heading out of the War Room. Normally, she would have gone to the bar and had a drink or two, but something didn't feel quite right. Pulling off her gloves, she made her way to her room, which was actually just on borrow to her. Her “permanent” residence was, of course, in what was once Narshe, the coaltown, but now was Narshe, the beach resort.  
          Finally in her room, and ready for bed, Celes Chere, former General of the Ghestahlian Imperial Forces sighed, and rested her sword against the wall, near the pillow, just in case. Climbing into the bed, clad in her slip, she passed swiftly into sleep.  
          Some time during the night, there was a strange sound, which prompted her to wake up. Years of military training paid off, of course, making her alert to any threats that might be forthcoming, but when she cracked her eyes just barely, the only thing that she made out before the door shut again was a short body and a lot of hair. She grined to herself as the covers behind her rustled, and then the bed dipped down behind her. When the arm slipped around her middle, Celes couldn't prevent the contented sigh from escaping her lips.  
          “Terra?” Celes inquired softly.  
          “Yeah?”  
          “What are you doing in here?” Celes asked, careful not to move. Even if she didn't want to admit it, this was nice.  
          “I couldn't sleep, I'm too nervous, I think. D-do you mind if I sleep in here with you?”  
          “Do you mind cuddling with me?” Celes replied boldly, and if anyone knew her, they knew that she never asked for that sort of thing.  
          “I thought I was already doing that.”  
          Here, Celes stifled a laugh, rolling over slowly. She slipped one arm under Terra's neck, and the other she rested on the dip of Terra's waist, before pulling the girl closer to her. Satisfied, she closed her eyes again, and murmured, “Much better.” The last thing that Celes remembered before passing on into sleep again was the featherlight touch of lips to her own.


	2. Into the Storm

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In this chapter, Celes and Terra investigate the possibility of a living Esper under the snowdrifts of the Veldt.
> 
> Once again, I do not own Final Fantasy VI or any of the characters.  
> Written by tumblr user Menzoberranzan.

          The light was hard to deal with, intense. It wasn't the sun, no, at three in the morning, it couldn't be the sun, Celes realized as she sat up. Reaching over to where Terra'd been sleeping, she discovered only empty space, and then her eyes adjusted to the light coming from the lantern in Terra's hand. At this moment in particular, Terra was standing at the foot of the bed, Clothing in one hand and lantern in the other, and there was a look of determination on her face. Terra was already dressed, ready to leave, and just outside of the door there was Setzer, knocking.  
          “Up and at'em, Celes, we're going now,” he called through the door, and retreating footsteps made their way down into the depths of the castle. Celes shifted on the bed, and Terra sat the lantern down on the bedside table, taking a seat next to her. The blonde reached out for her clothes, half-asleep, and was beginning to dress, slowly, carefully, making sure that everything was right. When she stood again, she was clad in a similar outfit to Terra's own, white denim to blend in with the snow where they were going. Standing up straight now and pulling on her shoes, Celes turned to face her green-haired counterpart.  
          “Are we really ready to do this, d'you think?” she inquired idly, almost as if trying to skirt around a larger issue. Of course Terra picked up on that, and simply smiled, nodding once.  
          “I think we'd have to be,” Terra answered, leaning back to rest on her hands. To say that she was concerned about bringing Celes with her would have been to put it lightly, far too lightly; she didn't like to put people in danger anymore, not after the destruction of the Magitek lab and the subsequent ripping of the world right down the middle. She flicked her gaze up to the former Knight and chuckled.  
          “You look good in white,” she continued, “Kind of like a Paladin,” she mused, tilting her head to the side as Celes reached for her sword. Thoughts stormed in the commander's mind then, worry, mostly. Worry about what was going to come next, after the drop, and during the search for this mysterious magicite shard. Everyone, including her, had seen the magicite shards all crumble, so what exactly had happened with this one? Was it more powerful? What could it do, and would it simply open the way for something terrible to happen? Too many questions, too much mute fear, and too much to really think about right now; they had a job to do.  
          “A Paladin, huh? Nah, I'm afraid that there's a bit too much blood on my hands to become a Paladin, you know. I always did kind of like white, only problem with it is that it gets dirty so much faster when traveling. Are you ready?” Celes argued back, though she said it all with a smile. She was right, though. A person doesn't lead an entire empire against the rest of the world without accruing a few black marks on their record, and all the apologies in the world wouldn't bring the dead back to life. So many dead, Celes brooded as she belted her sword to her back. She'd adopted a new style after everything had gone down, and spent most of her time either making sure Terra was safe, or training with Shadow in the southern end of what was once South Figaro.  
          “Why do you always do that? Do you just not know how to take a compliment?” probed Terra, sitting forward, the knives braced on her wrists twinkling in the lantern-light. “Yes, I'm ready, I've been up for an hour now. Do you want something to eat?” she pressed on, and when the blonde shook her head, Terra frowned.  
          “I'm not hungry yet. No doubt Cyan has found a way to package food up nice and tight, so we'll worry about food later, I should think. Did you eat, though?” Celes quizzed, and Terra simply nodded once again. Reaching out, Celes gripped Terra's arm and pulled her gently from the bed, staring down into the shorter woman's eyes. Something like a flicker of want passed over the blonde's face for a moment before she turned, taking the few steps to the door, exhaling a sigh of relief when the door itself opened without a knock. Standing there, surrounded by the light of yet another lantern, was Relm, a backpack slung over her shoulder.  
          “If you two are ready, we'll be heading out in five, got it?” the child stated, staring from Terra to Celes. No, she hadn't anticipated running into both of them in one room, and with a knowing smile, simply passed the backpack to Celes and turned, disappearing into the depths of the castle to board the Falcon, leaving the two women to wonder about that smile.  
          “I think we should go ahead and get to the ship,” Celes murmured, refusing for the moment to look at her counterpart, lest the other halfling see the dusty blush on her cheeks. With that, the Magitek Knight evacuated the room, closely followed by Terra. Thanks to Edgar and Cyan, the Castle of Figaro, under the former desert, now jungle, could change it's shape on both the inside and outside. Effectively, the castle was a maze and constantly shifted during the day, making maps and memory useless when it came to finding out where to go, except for the War Room, which never moved.  
          In the hangar, where the modified Falcon sat, the rest of the crew had already assembled, some workers from Figaro Castle, some that Setzer himself had hired from Doma, and Edgar. These people were the ones outfitting the Falcon for blizzard flight, and even though the Falcon wouldn't be able to land, that didn't so much matter, given the fact that Celes and Terra would be arriving by dropship. This is the moment where Cleles paused, and, turning to face Terra, crossed her arms over her chest.  
          “Did you hear anyone mention anything about a dropship?” she demanded quietly, her voice low and almost threatening. As a former Imperial Knight, she'd of course done airdrops, and she was not a fan of jumping out of a perfectly good airship if she could help it. If it was still flying and she was on it, then she would certainly still be on it when it landed, and it had once led to a demotion. Terra shook her head again, and Celes huffed, turning back around to stride onto the airship itself, where she confronted Setzer; Shadow appeared out of the darkness of the hangar, as he was wont to do, and stood next to Terra, staring down anyone who happened to glance in her direction.  
          “Hey, Gabbiani!” Celes hollered, her hands on her hips. The coat on her shoulders was getting heavy, so she removed it, and slung it over her shoulder, dropping the backpack full of whatever it was to the deck of the ship. From the Flight Deck, through an open window which would surely be closed, Setzer leaned out and stared down at her.  
          “Tell me something,” Celes began, testily and the few workers between them quickly got out of firing range, knowing that the woman had a temper, “How exactly did you plan to get us to the Veldt?” she finished, locking eyes with the gambling man. Of course, Setzer just smiled, pulling a pair of dice from his pocket and tossing them to the deck at Celes' feet.  
          “Did you miss the part of the plan where I told you that I'd fly you close as I could, or were you actually not paying attention when I was talking?” he counter-accused calmly, that winning smile never quite leaving his face, even when Celes stamped her foot on one of the die.  
          “Are you an idiot?! There's no dropship?!” she shouted, kicking the dice away from her now. Down in the hangar bay, away from the conflict between the blonde and the gambler, Terra shifted her weight, and Shadow turned to face her, his arms crossed over his chest.  
          “I wouldn't worry too much, just saying. I'd send Interceptor with you two, but I'm afraid he doesn't like heights very much,” Shadow began, as Celes hiked her way up to the cockpit to duel with Setzer. It was just like him, really, to not think about the little details, like staying alive during the mission, for instance, and this was the last straw. Terra tilted her head to the side and knelt next to Shadow, staring at Shadow's Beauceron Hound, and the dog lunged forward, licking her face once.  
          “Thank you, but I'd rather not put him in danger, to be quite honest. Anyway, I think it's almost time to go, don't you?” she asked quietly, making Shadow nod while Terra was scratching Interceptor behind the ears before standing and making her way onto the ship. Once on the deck, Terra picked up the backpack and headed into the ship. She found a room where the two could stay during the flight, which wouldn't take very long even if the storms on the Veldt had spread all the way to Doma. Up in the cockpit, Celes lifted her fist and brought it down on Setzer's head, and he laughed, rubbing the spot with the heel of his hand.  
          “I don't get what you're so upset about, Princess, because the fact of the matter is, you asked, well, actually, you demanded this mission, and then you didn't check out the hardware specs. If you'd asked for a dropship last night during the meeting, I could have already had one ready for you today, but as it is, we have to go now. I mean, think about it. We might be the only people in the world who know about this, we might not be. I'm gonna bet that we aren't the only people who know about this magicite, for the simple fact that I like the long odds, and that means we don't have time to prepare if we want to get there first,” Setzer explained, leaning against the console of the ship. “The element of surprise is the most important thing, and it's not like we haven't done something like this before, right? What's the big deal?”  
          “The big deal is, it's not everyone going, it's just Terra and I, and I want to keep her safe, because-” Celes started, and then she clamped a hand over her mouth, and Setzer's jaw dropped in surprise. That was the closest Celes'd ever come to saying anything about her relationship with Terra. Slowly, Celes dropped her hand and Setzer shut his mouth, both of them deciding to chage the subject to something that could be considered safe, at least for the moment.  
          “Are we ready to fly?” Celes questioned, her tone level, soft, and Setzer gave a thumbs-up, stepping aside. If anyone knew how to fly this ship as well as he did, it was Celes, but even so, they both knew he'd be the one flying. He pointed over to two parachutes, a relic stolen from the city of Vector during the sacking of the Empire, and strode over to them, testing the straps and investigating them for integrity. Smiling now, he turned back to face Celes, and nodded.  
          “All set. Get on the horn and let everyone know, alright?” Setzer commanded, taking on his role as the pilot of the Falcon, “And once you're done with that, head below and find Terra. We need to have a talk, us three.” With that said, he began to flip switches and pull levers, powering up the engines. “I take it you know how to prep a ship for take-off?”  
Celes snorted at that. Of course she did! Even if she hadn't been on any airships before Setzer's, she had been the General of the Imperial Army, Admiral of the Fleet of Vector, and Executive Commander of the Magitek Knights, and had overseen more than her fair share of waterborne combat. If there was anything she knew, it was ships. Sliding herself over to the intercom, she lifted the microphone to her mouth, and hit the button to open the line.  
          “Attention, crew of the HMS Falcon, airship in service to the Kingdom of Figaro of Northern Gaia, Crew members are to report to their stations and ready themselves to receive orders,” Celes stated, all business at the moment. Now that the announcement had been made, she trotted over to Setzer and bought a pack of cigarettes from him, lighting one and giving the crew time to assemble. Five minute's later, she returned to the intercom, and flipped one of the switches next to it, allowing her to speak directly to the crew.  
          “Attention, we are now going to begin preparations to take off. Batten down the hatches and ports, place retaining bars where needed. Navigation, check our heading and map out the easiest route, even though our captain will fly his own way. Check the ship battery, reserve supply of food and water. Engineering, test fuel levels, check the sails, and open the hangar doors,” Celes continued, and that was when someone threw the lever in the castle, causing the entirety of Figaro to begin to ascend from the geological stratum, heading toward the surface world, to the jungle of Figaro. She flipped the switch again, and the intercom kicked on in the hangar.  
          “Attention passengers, we are now boarding for the mission. All passengers of the HMS Falcon are to report to their assigned quarters for take-off. Make sure to secure personal belongings in closets and cabinets, and use the retaining bars to keep cabinets closed. When you arrive in your quarters, after locking down your belongings, have a seat. After we reach cruising altitude, you will be able to move about the ship freely. Attention passengers, we are now boarding for the flight to the Veldt, please report to your quarters immediately,” Celes finished, and then she put the microphone back, turning it off. It would be a few minutes until take-off was actually supposed to occur, and so, with a passing glance to Setzer, who was testing the wheel and checking the various displays in the cockpit, she made her way to her quarters, intent on finding Terra, who was, of course, was on her way to the cockpit; she bumped into Celes as the knight rounded a corner. Grinning, Terra sidestepped, and when Celes turned to follow her back to the cockpit, Terra stopped moving for a moment.  
          “Were you looking for me?” she asked carefully, and Celes nodded, crossing her arms over her chest. The blonde stared at the former sorceress for a moment, as if assessing her, and then, satisfied, prodded Terra's shoulder, indicating that they should continue on.  
          “I was. Setzer wants to talk to us, presumably about the mission. I don't think we have to worry about anyone else, though, as they are most likely already in their rooms,” Celes answered as they made their way back to the cockpit. They spent the majority of the time in muffling silence, Terra with her arms around a stuffed moogle plushie, and Celes with one hand resting on the hilt of her sword. Just outside the door leading to the cockpit itself, Terra stopped, and so did Celes, each turning to face the other, aware for that moment that the two of them were alone. It was Celes who leaned forward first, her hands drifting to Terra's shoulders, pulling the woman closer, and then they were sharing a quick kiss. Terra's lipstick smeared across Celes' lips, and when the two stepped apart, Celes wiped furiously at her mouth, frowning.  
          “It's not you,” Celes sputtered, continuing her wiping, “I just- I'm sorry I did that,” she explained, turning back to face the door to the cockpit; she sighed, and settled her hair back in place, taking a few deep breaths to stop her heart from hammering so hard.  
          “Why are you sorry? I'm certainly not,” Terra stated evenly, using one of her fingers to fix the smudges of lipstick on her face. Chuckling to herself, and willing the blush on her cheeks to vanish, she shifted the moogle plush to rest under one arm, and with her free hand she took Celes' own, giving it a squeeze before standing up straight, facing the door again. Together, they shoved open the double doors, and headed inside.  
          “Welcome back, ladies. I'd appreciate it if you'd go ahead and get strapped in, I'm gonna full-throttle it as soon as the hangar clears the surface,” Setzer called from the middle of the room. Making the smart decision, the two girls leaned against one of the walls, where there were straps for essential crew to put themselves in during take-off. Casting a glance over his shoulder, Setzer caught a glimpse of Celes belting Terra in, and with a smile, noted how Celes' hands had a tendency to linger after securing the straps before she got herself strapped to the wall.  
          “Alright, so here's the deal. I don't know what it is yet, but I'm pretty close to figuring it out. There's something going on between you two, isn't there?” Setzer began, just as the stars in the night sky came into view above the airship. He pulled down hard on a lever, and the ship rocketed toward the sky, achieving cruising altitude not long after. Setting the ship to hover for the moment, Setzer turned to face the two of them, just as they extricated themselves from the straps, and he leaned against the wheel, watching them as they tried to come up with an explanation.  
          “Maybe there isn't, maybe there is. What difference does it make to you?” Celes spoke quietly, her hands on her hips. Behind her, Terra peeked out to look at the sky pirate for a moment, before stepping out from behind Celes.  
          “Hey, I didn't say it mattered, I'm just a guy who likes to know what's going on, understand?” Setzer replied, turning back to face the wheel and then angling the ship toward the Veldt. Setzer was a man who knew this world by heart, and no amount of geological change would ever really see him lost. It was almost like he could hear the world itself. Celes shifted her weight as the ship began to move, cutting through the air like a red-hot wire through butter, reaching into her pocket for another cigarette. Terra reached out and took one for herself, of course, and using a bit of power she still maintained, managed to get both cigarettes lit.  
          “I think, that it's not really any of your business what we do,” Celes continued, blowing out a huge cloud of smoke and searching the sky. Down below, she could still see Figaro Castle, and she smiled to herself as the castle sank below the ground again. It would only be when Setzer was on his way back that the castle would rise again, but both Celes and Terra knew the back way into Figaro Castle. Terra nodded her assent, and then, as they crossed over the Sea of Figaro, she held out her hand, and grinned, snapping her fingers to summon a handful of fire.  
          “I was right. As we get closer to the Magicite, our powers will return. Given the current rate of exchange, by the time we get there, I'll be able to access my Esper form!” she explained excitedly, and with good reason. Back during the time she'd spent working for the Empire, and during the time that she'd spent trying to tear it down, Terra's only real freedom had come with her other form. Absently, she wondered if Celes had an Esper form herself, being that the Magitek Knight had not been born to a human woman with an esper father, or born to an Esper woman with a human father. Still, though, with Esper genes, Terra reasoned to herself, Celes should have an esper form.  
          “Anyway, you're right, it isn't any of my business. We're gonna be arriving at the drop point in a few minutes, so you might want to go and get the pack Relm brought you and get the 'chutes on. We're not gonna bother with goodbyes, because you'll be back soon, and time's a-wasting, right? Get ready,” Setzer spoke, mulling over what to say next. “Good luck, ladies, and godspeed.” Not even ten minutes later, Celes and Terra stood on the deck of the HMS Falcon, parachutes strapped on and pack trapped under Celes' arm, while Locke fitted them with winter clothing and armor.  
          “We don't want you two to get sick, right? Hurry back,” Locke began, “And if you find any good treasure, let me know, I wanna have a look later on.” Both women nodded, and linking hands, they prepared to jump down into the storm. Before they did, however, the intercom clicked on again, and Setzer's voice filled the air.  
          “Everyone, wish these girls some luck, alright? I'll give you ten to one odds that they come back in one piece!” he called, and then things took a turn for the worse.  
          An unidentified ship was approaching from the north, flying the colors and the flag of the Ghestahlian Empire , and the cannons were ready to fire. Without prelude, the volley began, and the first shell struck the side of the Falcon. Being made out of high-grade steel, the Falcon could stand a pounding, but not for long, and so, when the intercom quit again, Setzer jerked the wheel to the left, causing the deck to lean horrendously. The second shell hit, and the resulting explosion caused the ship to careen again. At this moment, Celes jumped, tugging Terra off the ship with her as the two of them plummeted toward the storm that raged over the Veldt.          


	3. Under the Surface

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> And here we have the first scene where Terra and Celes do the thing. 
> 
> I do not own Final Fantasy VI or any of the characters. I make no money from this work.  
> Written by tumblr user Menzoberranzan.

                It’s often said that once the cloud line is passed after one is forced to jump out of a plane, that the rest of the flight is easy, all the way down to the ground. This is not true, even a tiny little bit, when dropping out of the sky at terminal velocity with a dear friend’s hand trapped in your own, Celes thought to herself as they plummeted, faster and faster towards the clouds. Even before they reached the tops of the clouds, Terra could see the cold lightning snapping in the air below them, and she reached now to grip Celes’ other hand, all while spinning around in the air in what can only be described as a death roll.  
                When they hit the tops of the clouds, a layer of frost greeted them, blanketing them both in a layer of frost, and still they fell, hurtling towards what would certainly be death, and yet, when they broke through the bottom of the cloud line, the sight that greeted them was not, in fact, a grim reaper, but instead a chaotic mess of a blizzard, complete with a raging tornado right in the middle. Even from there, they still had to fall well over half a mile before the ground would rush up to break them, though, given the windspeed, deploying the parachutes right then would have been a truly terrible idea. Staring into Terra’s eyes, Celes chuckled, and then she pulled Terra closer to her, shaking frost from her hair.  
                “In ten seconds, pull the ripcord!” she cried, and when Terra nodded, Celes shoved her away, giving both of them ample space to open their chutes without getting tangled. Here, for the both of them, time seemed to slow down to an almost imperceptible crawl, with seconds passing like hours. The first second ticked by, and Terra gripped the loop of cable with both hands, waiting for the right moment, she was ready, she would survive this, she’d done so much worse in her life, surely this was nothing.  
                The second changed again, and now it was Celes’ turn to take the ripcord between her fingers, and then she stared across the sky at Terra, not more than twenty feet away from her. Three seconds had passes since Celes had forced Terra away from her, and the anticipation was starting to make her sweat just a little, or was that cold water? Hell, if it was water or sweat and not piss, she’d count herself lucky. Four seconds, and Terra looked back at the former knight with her eyes narrowed, trying to speak against the rushing winds.  
                Five seconds, and Now they could see the mountain range surrounding the Veldt, and by that, the ground rushing upwards as if to say hello. It was unsettling, to put it lightly, and Celes could feel her own worry about the next coming moments. What would happen if either one of them died? Terra knew she wasn’t wilderness-minded, and Celes knew that she couldn’t make this journey alone; shit, the blonde didn’t even know how to talk to Espers, she was literally hopeless in that department, and that meant that if either one of them took any sort of spill and couldn’t travel, or, gods forbid, worse, that the mission was over.  
                Seven seconds had passed in mute silence, and the two girls locked eyes again before turning to stare at the ground. This was the most terrifying part of the whole mission, this last three seconds before they’d hit the ground, hopefully near each other, hopefully not too far away, this last three seconds before they’d get to find out if Setzer’s examination and study of Imperial Issue equipment was up to par. Eight seconds had passed, and counting down, nine, ten, both of the girls tugged on the ripcord of their parachutes.  
                In no time at all, the parachutes unfurled above them, taking in just enough air to create the much-needed drag that would ensure their survival. Still, though, the ground came up fast, and Celes found herself buried deep under the snow with the parachute over her head. Terra’d been luckier, she mused, but only by a little, for the green-haired girl had been buried chest-deep, about thirty feet away. Shivering, Celes drew upon herself, intending to keep warm, and at that time, Terra was using her Fire spell to escape the confines of her own ice-cage. As an Ice Magess herself, Celes couldn’t effect change in the ice around her, but could prevent it from falling near her. Fat lot of good that does me now, she thought to herself, and she exhaled hot breath onto her hands, rubbing them together to keep them from getting too cold.  
                It was more than a few minutes until Terra was free, and she detached the parachute from her body before making her way over to Celes’ landing zone, marked only by a deflated parachute bearing the seal of the Ghestahlian Empire. She wrapped the parachute cords that bound to the harness around her hands and pulled as hard as she could. Feeling the tugs, Celes shifted in her ice-pit, and started to crawl up and out of the hole.  
                On the surface, Celes rolled onto her back, and, laughing to herself, released the harness from around her middle, staring up at the sky. It appeared that the two women had landed in an area relatively free of the worst parts of the storm, and the realization that both of them were alive prompted her to laugh again, louder this time. Still somewhat shaken, she reached into her pocket, and pulled out her pack of smokes.  
                Terra sat down next to Celes, and pulled the pack Relm had given them from Celes’ arm, dropping it onto the ground next to them. She sat down next to the blonde, and sighed, staring up at the sky herself, arms crossed over her chest, and she reached for Celes’ cigarettes with shaky hands. Maybe they’d both done skydrops before, but going through a blizzard had never been something they’d had to do before, and that meant that there was a bit of concern, leaving both of them full of adrenaline and just a little bit of joy. She lit both cigarettes with a small jet of flame, and then she shook her hand, grimacing.  
                “It looks like my magic got weaker. Any reason why, what do you think?” she asked, taking a drag from her own cigarette. Celes sat up, and shifted, so that she and Terra were facing each other. She considered everything for a moment, environmental factors, magical resonance, and emotional disturbance, before she tilted her head to the side, exhaling her own cloud of smoke as she wrapped her coat tighter around herself.  
                “Well, you are a fire-type, right? You’re normally involved in flame, heat, and things that burn, you know. I think given that the environment here seems to be magically-generated, meaning that either we landed on a spot where magic had been used in great amounts before, or that a safe zone was made for us. If you think about the storm, the drop was a lot easier than it should have been, suggesting that we were protected by something, and that same something might actually be deadening your powers, right? Surely, you remember the elf that controlled metal, right? I couldn’t use my sword, and we had to get you an axe,” Celes finally answered, crossing her legs under her.  
                “Yeah, but, I’ve never had any problems like this before. Even when we faced the Husks of the Triad, I didn’t have any sort of limiters on me, and neither did you, remember? Maybe I’m just cold, you know?” Terra argued, huffing out a steamy breath. Shaking her head slowly, Celes stood and began to stuff the parachutes down into where she’d landed, covering them with snow. If she was right, and with any sort of luck, once they left this immediate area, the snowstorm would return to it, and there would be no evidence of their passage through here, which might throw their enemies off, even if just for a few days.  
                “That’s true, of course, but I think that because Espers don’t have to play by normal rules anymore, right? I mean, technically, they’re all supposed to be dead, and yet you and I still live. If we can break the rules like that, who’s to say that the full-blood Espers can’t?” Celes questioned, flipping the butt of her cigarette away as she stood. Stretching out her hand, she grinned at Terra.  
                “Come on, We need to get somewhere warm so you and I can charge up,” she continued, tugging Terra to her feet. When the green-haired girl stood, she pulled Relm’s pack onto her shoulder, slinging it over her back and around the opposite side of her neck, and then, refusing to take her hand from the Knight’s, she began to walk, pulling the map from her pocket.  
                “Okay, according to this, the Magicite is located in the same area as the tornado we saw on our way in. However, there’s a cave about a quarter-mile from the storm, so we should be able to barricade ourselves in it, and keep warm, at least for tonight; ice-based or not, everyone feels temperature,” Terra reasoned, and indeed, as they walked, Celes was already wishing for blankets, a fire, something hot to eat. The dawn light peeked over the edge of the horizon, revealing that Celes had been correct in her assumptions; something was taking care to make sure they came to no real harm in this place. However, even given that, there was still the fact that this place was impossibly cold, likely due to the magicite itself. After all, anytime they’d ever run across something like this, for they had, just not on this grand of a scale, there was always some sort of magical object at the center of it all.  
                They walked for a long time, and when they stopped, they still weren’t any closer to the storm center itself, having headed directly north in hopes of finding a cave that Locke had forgotten to mark down on the map. This, of course, had proven to be a terrible idea, when the surface of the ice gave away to a bubble of snow, dropping them twelve feet underground. This, of course, was the worst possible scenario, Celes mused, staring up at the hole they’d fallen through. She’d fallen first, and had been the one to break Terra’s fall, a fact which she took some pride in. She’d been holding the woman bridal-style, though, and the realization of that fact gave her pause as they stood there. Carefully so, Celes set Terra back on her fet, and when she went to look back at the hole, it was gone.  
                Not as in disappeared, but just gone, like it had never been there in the first place. Terra stared around them, and shivered, exhaling a breath that seemed just a little cold on Celes’ shoulder. Silently, Celes studied their surroundings, and was able to determine that they were, in fact, here because of whatever had been protecting them from the blizzard; the realization offered her no comfort, though, and then came the next concern: how do you make head in an ice bowl?  
                As if to answer her unspoken question, Terra mustered her strength and force, launching a small fireball at the ceiling over their heads before collapsing. In the next moment, Celes had stripped off her outer coat and wrapped Terra up with it, before taking off her undercoat and setting it on the ground. Opening the pack that Relm had given them, Celes discovered a great many things. It was just a teleporter for small things. She powered it on, and Cyan’s face came into view, looking smug.  
                “Look what I did, isn’t it such a great invention coming from someone like me?” he began, and the look on Celes’ face was apparently enough to give him pause. Silent now, he simply gulped, and held up a pad of paper and a pen, ready to take down the order.  
                “I need lighter fluid, a disposable lighter, seven blankets, a ceramic rice stove, rice, and kindling. Don’t forget soup,” demanded Celes, her tone flat. Cyan, ever-attentive gentleman-knight that he was, picked up on that, and tilted his head to the side in question.  
                “Did something happen?”  
                “In a manner of speaking, yes, something did happen. Let’s just say that neither of us are ready for this level of cold. If you could hurry, that would be great, I’d really rather not have to wait for this blizzard to stop to continue this mission,” Celes replied dryly, and Cyan snapped off a quick salute to her, causing her to smile. “In the meantime, I’ll do my best to keep her warm, but I do need to be able to make a fire.”  
                “But of course, Lady Celes. Shall I send along a military cot as well?” he asked, and she nodded. It would be better to keep Terra off the ground while this was happening, while the fire was being prepped, and food was being made, especially given that they would probably go to bed soon. After all, it had been a hell of a day, even if they’d only been up for two or three hours; they hadn’t gotten very much sleep between Edgar’s meetings and general anxiety. The screen stopped showing Cyan’s face, and in just a few minutes, things started to materialize around Celes. The first thing she did was begin to check Terra over for wounds, and found that the woman wasn’t injured at all, she was just worn out and exhausted. Celes pulled the sword off of her back and rested it on the floor of the ice-cave, turning to stare at the other woman.  
                Resting her hand on Terra’s cheek for a moment, Celes heaved a sigh of relief, covering her eyes with her free hand, and, now that everything was here, she reached behind her and turned off the teleporter. The next action, of course, was to pile the kindling on top of her coat, but before that, she stood, and picked up three of the blankets, laying one on the ground between herself and Terra. She rolled Terra onto it carefully, and then layered the other two blankets on top of her, wrapping her up.  
                Satisfied, she grinned, and picked up the bottle of lighter fluid and lighter. She sprayed the wood, and when it was covered in the igniter, the smiled, flicking open the lighter and rolling the grind wheel in her hand, lighting it before tossing it onto the pile of kindling.  
                With the fire roaring now, Celes packed up the Teleporter, and sat down next to Terra, holding her hands out to warm them next to the fire. Absently, she wondered about the next few hours of her life, and how everything might fall apart or work perfectly, and all the little things that could go wrong, like, for example, falling into a snow-hole in the middle of the wilderness during a blizzard. Once more, she was thankful for whatever was protecting them from that, and she lit another cigarette using a smaller stick in the fire to do so.  
                She shifted to lay down on the blanket under Terra, and rolled onto her side, trapping the cigarette between the fingers of her left hand before she pulled the blankets up on her, using the other blankets to make a makeshift pillow so that she could keep an eye on the fire.  She shivered, of course, for even with the heat of the flame, she was surrounded in this place by ice, and the blankets weren’t heated. Slowly, she shifted her right arm, sliding it under Terra’s neck as she rested on her back, pulling Terra closer to her for the sake of warmth.  
                The cigarette had finished itself while she wasn’t paying attention, though, and even if she’d wanted to, she couldn’t have reached for her cigarettes now. Smiling to herself, she began to drift off to sleep again, her eyes closing slowly.  
                Dreaming had always been a problem for Celes, because she had a very vivid imagination, the kind that people knew could create terrible things to truly horrifying, even if she didn’t want to dream. This was one such case, one such night where she was unable to control her dreams. Of course she would dream of him, that terrible man, the Mad Mage Kefka Palazzo, and the destruction he’d wrought during his life.  
                The worst part of the dream, though, was the moment when he’d looked straight at her, and whispered, “Dead, but never gone.”  
                Time passed, as it tends to, and a few hours later, Terra was the first to wake. Thankfully, the fire hadn’t gone out, and she sat up, pulling the blankets off of her and shoving them towards Celes. She drew her knees up to her chest, and looked over to her companion, noting that the woman seemed a little strained. Worry creased her features right then, and she held up her hands, placing one on Celes’ forehead, and the other on her shoulder, hoping that this worked. After all, if Celes were to not be able to move, or was too stressed, she wouldn’t be able to continue on, so Terra would heal her, if she could manage it.  
                The magic came easily to her now; perhaps because it was curative, but that didn’t matter, Terra was glad that she was able to do this. The spell worked quickly, restoring color to Celes’ cheeks, and the blonde opened her eyes, shoving the blankets away from her to sit up.  
                For a moment, Celes was still dreaming, and she reached out to grip the hilt of her sword, unsheathing it and pulling it up onto her lap, her fingers wrapped tightly around the handle. Terra, naturally, drew her hands back and smiled, shaking her head.  
                “You always were cautious, but I don’t think that there’s too much we have to worry about right now, we’re safe, I think. Are you hungry?” Terra asked, and Celes simply nodded, her throat dry. Silently, Terra stood to gather the stove, and the rice. Luckily, water wouldn’t be too hard to come by, since they were surrounded by snow. She lit the fire with her magic, naturally, and sat back, scooping handfuls of snow into the stove’s ceramic bowl, and, once it melted, starting to boil in no time at all, Terra added the rice and covered it with the lid, returning to her perch next to Celes.  
                By this time, Celes had woken up, and had already sheathed her sword, rifling through her pockets for her cigarettes, handing Terra one. The Sorceress fired a jet of flame from her fingertip, lighting both cigarettes, and the two of them sat there, silent, waiting for the rice to finish cooking, but as time went on, Terra became antsy.  
                “What’s wrong?” she demanded, shrugging out of Celes’ overcoat and placing it back on the blonde’s shoulders.  
                “I had a dream.”  
                Those words gave Terra pause, for Celes was known for more than a few things, one of them being prophetic dreams, though the dreams themselves could be wrong. To date, though, Celes had an eighty per cent chance of accuracy.  
                “What about?” Terra pressed, sliding closer to the woman, pulling a blanket up and around their shoulders.  
                “Him,” was all Celes said, her tone soft, and flat; Terra knew who that particular him was, though, and she was silent for a few moments before speaking again, narrowing her eyes at the stove in front of them.  
                “I take it he had something to say?”  
                “Yeah,” came the gruff reply, before Celes leaned over, resting her head against Terra’s shoulder, “He said, ‘dead, but never gone’.”  
                It was at that moment that the stove began to whistle, signaling that the rice was done, and so Celes sat up, allowing Terra to move. She was secretly glad that Terra was alright, she’d been more than a bit worried when the woman had passed out, and it seemed like Terra was just fine now. Perhaps all she needed was sleep?  
                When Terra returned to their perch, she had two bowls of rice in her hands, and when she sat, handing a bowl to Celes, she fished around in the backpack, pulling out two pairs of chopsticks. They ate in silence, and when they’d finished, the former Witch turned to face her counterpart, her eyes wide.  
                “Celes, I- Thank you,” she managed to say, and when Celes set her bowl down on the ground, Terra lunged forward, colliding with Celes and tackling her to the ground. For a moment, Celes froze, and then she was wrapping her arms around the other halfling, crushing their lips together in a furious kiss.  
                What happened next was something altogether unexpected; she dropped her hands to Terra’s rear and gave a hearty squeeze, causing the woman to cry out in pleasure, a sound greedily absorbed by Celes’ mouth. Over the course of the next few moments, the two of them managed to completely free each other of their clothes, and their hands wandered each other’s bodies, searching, prodding, squeezing.  
                Celes, breathless, broke the kiss, and stared up at the woman above her, ice-blue eyes locking to swirling green, searching them for something, anything, that would give a clue as to what would happen next, and yet, there wasn’t one, not there, at least. Deciding to continue, Celes brought her lips to Terra’s neck, eliciting another moan from her, before trailing her fingers up her back, dragging fine lines with her nails before nibbling along Terra’s pulseline.  
                “Are you sure you want this?” Celes murmured against that soft flesh in the crook of the other woman’s neck, resting her hands on Terra’s hips. There was something like electricity traveling between them, and for the first time, Celes actually wanted to be with her like this. Not that neither of them had never thought about it, no, but rather that they were afraid of asking, for fear of rejection. However, here, in this cave, the two of them were alone, and free. Terra opened her mouth to speak, but when all that came out was another moan, she just nodded her assent, and then she shifted, shrugging of Celes’ hands and lifting the blonde’s legs up.  
                When she knelt between Celes’ legs, she stared down, and was met with  what she expected, a shaven orifice, well-made and largely unused. Of course, it was at this moment that the blonde chose to be bashful, attempting to clamp her thighs together. Terra had none of that, though, and shifted, resting her cheek on Celes’ belly, flicking her tongue against the pale flesh. When the blonde gripped Terra’s hair gently, Terra chuckled victoriously, and dragged her own nails down the back of Celes’ thigh.  
                “But are you sure you want this, o General Chere?” Terra replied evenly, her tongue tracing lower and lower down Cele’s front, eventually settling just above her mound. When Celes lifted her hips into the air, Terra laughed again, using her free hand to deliver a light smack to the woman’s bottom.  
                “I’ll take that as a yes,” Terra continued, and then her tongue delved into Celes’ slit, locating that jewel nestled there. The first lick sent a jolt through Celes body, and without warning, her arms gave way, and she fell flat on her back again, her legs still trapped by Terra’s careful hands. It seemed to the knight that an eternity passed before the next lick came, and when it did, her toes curled, her hands fisted in the blankets under her, and she cried out, unable to stop herself. Terra, on the other hand, was enjoying herself immensely; her eyes closed and tongue wandering everywhere that she could possibly prod. More than once, she dipped her tongue into Celes’ entrance, causing the blonde to thrust her hips up into the air, almost as if attached to puppeteer’s wire.  
                When the first release swept over her, her entire body went rigid for a moment, and then there was the erratic movement of her hips, grinding up and down against Terra’s tongue, anxious for more, the heat was so intense, gods, she didn’t know it could be like this, this small orb of warmth and light coiling like a spring in her belly; her eyes squeezed shut, and Terra lifted her hand from the ground, thrusting two of her fingers into Celes’ insides, scraping pleasantly in all the right places, just before that spring coiled tightly enough to make the blonde feel like she were about to explode.  
                In the next moment, the waves crested, and the spring snapped, a low, guttural moan escaping her parted lips as she thrust her hips as high as they could go right then, heedless of the cold and the indecency of her noises. Of course Terra stayed right there, pressed up against her vulva, licking and slurping, thrusting her fingers in and out as Celes rode through her orgasm.  
                After what felt like hours, Celes relaxed, and Terra drew back, licking her own lips before thrusting her fingers into her mouth, draining the last of Celes’ juices from her digits, watching her only true friend in post-orgasmic bliss. At that moment, however, Celes was nothing but a bundle of nerves, popping, snapping, and winding down from that electric flower that had bloomed in her belly. With her hands on her stomach, she sat up slowly, curling her legs under her while watching Terra.  
                “You taste delicious, you know. Like mint and rain.”  
                “That was,” she began, and she stumbled on her words, unable to articulate exactly what had happened. Terra just smiled knowingly, nodding once, and then she leaned back, crossing her legs in front of her. The blonde shifted, crawling forward on all fours towards her best friend, and her lover now, though they hadn’t said anything to that effect quite yet.  
                “Would you mind if I,” she whispered, her voice scratchy, and when Terra grinned wider, Celes heaved a sigh of relief, resting her hands on the woman’s thighs.  
                                “Only if you want to, I’m not going to make you,” Terra responded silkily, her voice slathered with lust. No way was she going to deny both herself and Celes this opportunity, and with movements like water, Terra opened her legs to Celes’ waiting hands. This made Celes chuckle, shaking her head.  
                “Not like that,” she explained, lying on her back. With her hands now free, she reached for Terra’s hand and pulled the woman closer to her, eventually making Terra rest her hips just above Celes’ face, facing her. Without prelude, Celes rested one hand on the small of her back, holding her in place while her other hand searched for Terra’s labia. It wasn’t a long quest, and, chuckling, Celes traced the hot circle of Terra’s entrance with her tongue, intent on drawing out as much fluid as possible.  
                At this point, Terra was beside herself, wrapped up in the thrill of this moment that she’d found herself dreaming about more than once, and she had to stop herself from just dropping to grind against Celes’ too-careful tongue. Celes prodded against Terra’s pearl with the very tip of her tongue, applying pressure as she worshipped that tiny bud of nerves, that center of pleasure with her tongue. Terra cried out more than once while this was going on, and Celes was too focused on tasting every inch of this girl that she almost didn’t hear her.  
                Terra’s release came faster along than Celes’ had, but Terra had been awake longer, as was the usual; Terra would fall asleep first and rise first. When it did happen, Terra gripped the sides of Celes’ face with her thighs, gushing juices down into the blonde’s mouth, who gratefully slurped them down, almost purring into Terra’s body.  
                Resting her hands on the ground above Celes’ head, Terra shifted her weight to allow the blonde to move, and she sat up, reaching again for her cigarettes, of course handing one to Terra. Naked, satisfied, and full, the two of them sat there, wrapping the blankets around them so that they could stay warm.  
                “Celes,” Terre started to say, before the lady in question simply silenced her with a kiss.  
                “I don’t want to hear you say you don’t have anyone anymore, got it? You’ve got me; you’ve always had me,” Celes answered quietly, gripping Terra’s free hand with her own. For a minute or two, they sat in Silence, each consumed with their own thoughts, smoking and chuckling occasionally.  
                “I can’t wait to hear what Edgar has to say about it,” Terra continued, planting a kiss on her cheek, and Celes just shrugged, waving her other hand as if trying to bat away an annoying fly.  
                “Honestly, I don’t give a tinker’s damn what he thinks, or the others. The only one that I’ve got to pay attention to is you, and I’d like it if you remember that, alright? Now, I’m thinkin’ we should probably get dressed and ready to move out before we freeze,” Celes chided, the smile on her face belying the harshness of her words. Shifting under the blankets, Terra found their clothes, and the two of them stood, dressing quietly. Thankfully, the fire was still burning, and, lighting another cigarette, Celes began to pack everything up again, pulling the teleporter out of the backpack and turning it on.  
                After a short exchange with Cyan, the remainder of the stuff disappeared, leaving Celes and Terra alone in the cave. However, one of the wall near them looked like it was about to fall, and indeed, chunks of ice were falling. Terra did the smart thing and hid behind Celes, who’d picked up her sword and was facing whatever was about to happen.  Suddenly, a hand with fingers too long and furred reached through the other side into the cave, and Celes waited while the hand withdrew.  
                “I think we’re alright, don’t you?” she began, and Terra stepped out from behind her, nodding. In the next second, the wall fell away to reveal two old friends, Gau and Umaro, the Abominable Snowman of Old Narshe. Shaking her head, Celes faced Terra, and pointed.  
                “But why are they here?” the lady replied, and Celes just shrugged.  
                “We were sent by Niamh to collect you,” Gau explained, crossing his arms over his chest. The coat he was wearing was too big for him, and he kept it wrapped tightly around him. He might have been feral a few months back, but he’d grown up in the few years since the Empire had destroyed most of the towns on the Veldt. Now, he stood before them next to the giant Umaro, and the smile on his face, the light in his eyes, suggested that he’d learned a lot from somewhere.  
                “Who’s that,” Celes demanded of them, staring them up and down as the two women approached the two gentlemen, not that Umaro could be considered a man, being a yeti and all. Terra stayed close to her, indeed, kept a tight hold of her hand.  
                “Niamh is the one who summoned you here, and has been protecting you all this time. Sorry it took so long to get here, but Umaro kept losing your scent. Now, a couple of things; one, Niamh is an Esper, and she does know about the two of you. The reason that she summoned you is because she knows things that we don’t, and someone has to listen; problem is, I’m a normal human, and Umaro here is, well, you know,” Gau began, pointing to the hole in the wall, “But you two, you two can speak Esperian, right, so we have to get you to the Storm Core as fast as possible.” Celes stopped moving, and turned to face the boy, sheathing her sword while she thought of what to say next.  
                “What’s that?”  
                “Remember that storm you saw on your way here? Let’s just say that the reason the weather has changed so much in the last few months is because of Niamh. Why? Well, I think it’s because she’s special. Think like this. The Triad died, right? Crumbled away to dust? Now, why would they do that, without having a failsafe? The reason that you two are still alive is because of Niamh. Niamh is the Fourth Goddess, bride of Shinryu the Cosmic Dragon, and she’s the ticket to our salvation.”  
                Terra stepped forward again, and pulled Celes with her, the look in her eyes almost pleading; after all, this was all borrowed time now, and if someone else got ahold of Niamh’s magicite, who knew what they could do with it? They had to get there first. Celes nodded to Gau and Umaro, and together, the four of them began the trek to Niamh’s resting place, the center of the tornado and the source of the blizzard covering the Veldt.


End file.
